Utah Gov. Spencer Cox urged the public to step away from social media and reconnect with the real world in the wake of the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, calling platforms such as X, Facebook and TikTok “a cancer on our society.”
Cox said the violent images and videos that spread online after Wednesday’s shooting death of the 31-year-old Turning Point USA founder are too brutal for most people to process and will cause psychological damage. “We are not wired as human beings — biologically, historically — we have not evolved in a way that we are capable of processing those types of violent imagery,” he said, adding that people should “log off, turn off, touch grass, hug a family member, go out and do good in your community.”
Graphic images of Kirk’s death flooded social platforms in the immediate aftermath of the shooting and remain available online, Cox said. He described the circulation of such material as harmful and cited other recent viral killings — including the fatal stabbing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska on a Charlotte light-rail train — as additional reasons to avoid repeated exposure to violent content.
Earlier during the news conference, Cox read and referenced posts by Kirk in an effort to temper heated online discourse surrounding the killing. Among the excerpts he cited was a June post in which Kirk wrote, “When things are moving very fast and people are losing their minds, it’s important to stay grounded. Turn off your phone, read scripture, spend time with friends, and remember internet fury is not real life.”
Cox called the slaying a “watershed in American history” and said Americans now face a choice about how the nation responds. “Is this the end of a dark chapter in our history, or the beginning of a darker chapter in our history?” he asked. He urged people to seek an “off‑ramp” from online escalation rather than amplifying outrage.
Authorities have identified a suspected killer in the case as 22‑year‑old Tyler Robinson. Cox did not speak to investigative details and framed his remarks around the broader social and psychological effects of viral violent imagery rather than the specifics of the criminal case.
Cox, 50, is serving his second term as Utah governor. His comments came amid ongoing public and political debate over the role of social media platforms in spreading graphic content and shaping public discourse. Advocates for victims’ families, mental health professionals and some lawmakers have in recent years urged tighter controls by platforms and quicker removal of violent imagery; technology companies say they remove content that violates policies when it is reported or detected.
Cox concluded by urging citizens to seek face‑to‑face connection and community engagement rather than remaining drawn into online fury, saying that deliberate, offline choices can help reduce the harm caused by immediate and widespread exposure to violent images.
The governor’s appeal to limit online exposure follows a broader national conversation about content moderation and the psychological effects of repeated exposure to graphic imagery, a debate that has intensified as platform use and the speed of information sharing have increased.